Crossed Paths
by FukuWija
Summary: Two different personalities, from different worlds... meeting at the wrong place at the wrong time; yet entwined by an invisible string... -HIATUS - REWRITING-


**Crossed Paths  
**_by Wija-chama_

_**Prologue**_

**-xXx-**

_Two young incomparable people_

_Beings full of diverse worries_

_Born with their hearts in a ripple_

_In an invisible interconnected series_

**-xXx-**

**

* * *

**

A long haired man stood in front of their fridge's open door, holding a milk box in one hand; he turned his head to his son leaning on a wall opposite him.

"So, when's your Sprout exam?" came the unexpected question as he raised the milk box to his lips. The one being questioned raised a bemused eyebrow. " 'Sprout' exam?" he asked as he tilted his head to the side. "What 'sprout' exam?"

Laguna closed the door of the fridge "You know…" he began and turned around to face him. "That exam you told me about…" he started as he placed the box of milk on the isle before him.

"If you mean SeeD exam, it's next week already…" He stated, "But about a Sprout exam… I don't know a thing about that." He raised an eyebrow at his father. "I don't think it even exists…"

"It's the same thing, isn't it?" Laguna blinked with pouted lips. Squall closed his eyes and sighed. "I don't know where you get the idea of two – completely different spelled words – to be the same thing…" He crossed his arms over his chest.

"But they both start with S and both have plant-related names!" he stated as a matter-of-factly. Squall shook his head. "It still doesn't make sense that you would mix the two words with each other." The young man reprimanded. "There you go again trying to find ways to make it seem like you're right." He shook his head.

Taking a bowl from a cupboard beside his son, he muttered, "I don't do such a thing." He complained like a child. Squall only gave him a bored look. "Wha-what's with that look?" he asked as he went and sat on the chair of the isle.

"Nothing." Squall replied as he started walking off towards the dining room. "By the way," he halted in his tracks, "better careful with the milk… you might get a stomach ache before you know it." He warned. "Eh—how come? I don't particularly have any allergic reaction to lactose…" he scratched his head. "I know! But… you don't particularly have a strong stomach for spoiled milk either!" Squall shouted out from the other room.

Laguna blinked his eyes, "I see… so that was it." He lifted the box over his bowl, "eh—?" A sudden realization hit him. He widened his eyes, "IT'S SPOILED ALREADY?!" he shouted in shock. "WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME IN THE FIRST PLACE!?" he screamed at the top of his lungs, "SQUUAALLL!!" he called out.

He sighed as he heard his own name being called out so loudly. "Again…" he murmured to himself followed by a tired sigh. He knew how helpless his father would be with or without him, the more reason why he stayed with the man in the first place. _Its better this way_… he thought to himself, and with that one phrase in his mind, a small smile passed his features.

**-XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX-**

Young, elegant and beautiful, that she was. Yet there she was, like a bird locked up in a cage…and not that just what it seems, she was literally like a bird locked inside a cage. She never thought that her father would literally lock her inside their house. She only realized this as time passed by more and more as she grew up to become the young lady that she is now. With each passing time, she felt more pain and she felt the hours grew longer with each passing day. Every night she would lie in bed reminiscing the past she spent with her mother who passed away when she was young. Whenever she does, she wouldn't realize the tears flowing down her face, by time she would, she would then curl up into a ball and stay like that until she'd fall right asleep.

The reasons to how her mother died were unknown to her. All she ever knew was the moment she opened her eyes one day, she was nowhere to be found, and the one person who told her that she had died was the man she once called her father.

In the beginning, she believed everything he told her, but now that she was a young woman in her teens, she couldn't bring herself to believe him anymore. She did _not_ want to believe him. She was at a lost on what she should do now that she knows which she should trust or not. Now that she's grown up, she wasn't going to fall for his tricks again.

_Never again…_

Now that she's turned 16 years old, it was high time to get out of that place. That was her plan from the beginning. All she needed now was to obtain ideas to prepare her soon break out, and she has to finish this before sundown and make her get away before the sun rises. It was a difficult task – that, she knew, but a difficult task she had to overcome.

**-XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX-**

Groaning in pain as he held his stomach, he slowly approached the closed bathroom door. "Squuuuaalll!" he called out as he finally grasped on the knob, turning it and opening the door finally. "Come down and talk to your mother on the phone for me!!" he shouted in almost excruciating pain and suddenly ran inside the bathroom and closed it as soon as he came in.

From upstairs, the young man just sighed and went down as quick as his feet took him towards the receiver which was just dangling by the kitchen door. He picked it up, "mom? How've you been?" he asked in a gentle voice.

He paused waiting for her reply. "That's great." He tilted his head while he smiled a tiny smile.

Another pause as he waited for her to say something. Then he twitched at her sudden question. "Y-yes…" he replied as his eyes were closed, a tiny sweat drop rolling down from up his temple. "…again…yes, I know." He sighed. "You know how he is though…" he replied.

He chuckled. "I understand." He had a gentle look in his eyes. "I'll be sure to tell him it's spoiled as soon as I see him holding it." He smirked, "I will, mom, I promise." A tiny chuckle. "With that kind of tone, I'm guessing you don't believe I would warn him as soon as possible…" he smiled, and then a small chuckle followed once again. "Thanks, mom. I'll be sure to take care of myself too." A gentle smile.

Slowly turning his head, he noticed a black figure from behind the wall by the corner. He sighed a long sigh, "Oh nothing, I think I must continue to pack my things before we go leave for Deling. We'll be seeing you there, mom." He paused as he faced the wall where the phone was stuck to. "Take care of yourself too." He gave out one last gentle smile as he said his goodbye. A couple of seconds after he said his farewell to his lovely mother, he turned his head towards that wall with the black figure and said, "here…" with a serious face and cold voice holding the receiver with his right hand.

The black figure came out in a shy movement, "w-why so mean?" he pouted like a child. Squall looked at him with that same old bored look, "if you don't want to talk to mom, I'll go say another goodbye and tell her to hang up the phone." He threatened. With that, Laguna quickly ran up to him as quick as he could and held on the receiver as though his life depended on it. "I-I'll talk to her! Geez!" he whined. "Good." He let it go for him and started walking away.

"Hey hunny!" he called in a singsong voice; "just now I hurried that I even forgot to wash my hand!" he laughed like an idiot.

Squall suddenly stopped at his tracks and recollected what the man behind him had just proclaimed. It hit him hard and with that, he suddenly and uncharacteristically turned his head in one second and widened his eyes. _That hand, that hand…he held my hand when he took the receiver from me!_ He unknowingly declared mentally.

Laguna blinked as he saw the young man who was still in front of his view turn from an aura of red to a quick black. "GAH!" he gasped, "I-I was kidding! I was kidding!" he wailed with closed eyes as he covered his head with his arms as though Squall's glare tortured him to tell the truth.

With that said, the black aura turn to its original color, _gray?_ Thought Laguna as he blinked his eyes watching the young man walk away. Raising the receiver over his ear, he called out to his wife, "Hunny?"

All he heard was someone giggling on the other line. "Eeehh? Geez Raine! Give me a break!" he whined. "Stop already!" he pouted. "Yea, but—just now—he was—"

"You're both so mean to me!" tears flowed like waterfall from his eyes. "GEEZ YOU TWO! YOU'RE REALLY MOTHER AND CHILD!" he shouted and whined childishly to the person on the other line.

Hearing that, Squall held his forehead with his right hand and sighed, "…whatever."

**-****tsuzuku****-**

**

* * *

**

**A/n:** In case anyone didn't know…_tsuzuku_ means "to be continued" in Japanese… so you get the point. X'3

Anyways—! Finally! **Crossed Paths** rewritten, COMPLETE! Well, just this one and one-third of the first chapter, but hopefully I'll be able to finish it soon and then write the next chapters! 8'D

It's been a loooooong time since I've written any Final Fantasy fics. –blinks eyes- I've missed this story a lot! I've always wondered when I'd be able to write it again! Coz, out of all the fics I've written, I really, really like this one particularly. (and this is coming from someone who finds enjoyment reading Tokiya x Fuuko fanfics all the time. Lawl, instead of FF ones, you'd find me reading FoR, ToFuu based ones. X'P Well, some of you who don't really watch much anime prolly wouldn't understand me. But I mean…the aforementioned fancouple is one of my FAVORITE couple in the entire world! Lawl, that's all.) But still though, rather than my FoR fanfics to be my favorite, it had to be this one! Haha! It may seem unexpected, yea. Hehe.

Fortunately though, this story isn't so, soooo hard to convey into words. Well, hopefully this'll last until the final chapter! (Wish me luck that I finish the chapters quickly!)

Ohnoes! I rambled, huh? Hahaha! It's been awhile, that's why.

I've really missed the FF community, especially the FFVIII community! (VIII is after all, was _AND_ _IS_ still my fave FF game! –giggles-)

Anyways…I hope you enjoyed this _Prologue_ as much as I enjoyed writing it. Constructive criticisms are welcome! I haven't written for quite awhile, so I dunno for sure if my writing had become worse or better…ahehehe…although I would understand if it had become worse. O,o Hehehe…

**Disclaimer:** Same thing like always… I don't own these characters or the game itself (the tangible video game however, I used to own one, lawl) So anyways…you know the drill! –winks-

_**Coming Soon: **Squinoa meeting? 8'D Who likes?! And moar Laguna silliness? x'D_


End file.
